We meet Casper and Alexandra at the end of June, on the cusp of summer. There’s a sense of pause in the air, holidays approaching, routines loosening. Karlebo, the village they call home, is small and close-knit: one daycare, a school that runs to fifth grade, fields stretching wide, horses grazing in the distance. It feels almost rural, yet Copenhagen is only twenty minutes away. Cyclists pass through regularly, tracing the roads between forest and open land on their way toward the coast. The landscape shapes both the pace of the village and the life they have built here.
Casper’s years as a bike messenger shaped his understanding of space long before he formally studied landscape architecture. Navigating the city, he learned how materials, proportions, and subtle thresholds influence the way people gather, pause, and pass through. Alexandra’s background in biology and her work as a research scientist add another layer. She sees nature as dynamic and interconnected — a system in constant exchange. Together, they approach landscape not as a backdrop, but as a living framework that guides life within it.
That perspective is embedded in their house. A timber load-bearing structure supports walls made from hemp bricks combined with clay and chalk — materials selected not only for their low impact, but for how they perform and age. They regulate humidity, store CO₂, and create a balanced indoor climate throughout the year. Drawing on the village’s historic buildings, the design reinterprets the classic half-timbered form with restraint, resulting in a home grounded in its surroundings and designed to endure across generations.
